Phillips led his Trinidad & Tobago team to a Pan American Games Bronze medal in 1967. He was drafted the following year by the Baltimore Bays of the NASL, and the next season became player/coach of the Washington Darts of the ASL. As head coach at Howard University he led his team to two NCAA Championships and won Coach of the Year honors in 1971 and 1974. In 1990 he became the head coach of Virginia Commonwealth University. He has served as the goalkeeper coach for several USSF National teams and is the author of Goalkeeping: The Last Line of Defense: The First Line of Attack. Phillips was inducted into the Hall of Fame of Howard University in 1996 and the Hall of Fame of Trinidad and Tobago in 1998. He is the owner and director of the Lincoln Phillips Soccer School and the Top Flight Goalkeeping Academy.